Brits honoured in gender neutral categories at MTV awards

Three Brits took home the most coveted prizes in the first gender neutral acting awards in film history at the MTV Movie and TV Awards.

Sunday's event did not separate nominees based on their gender - a move that mirrored the Grammy Awards, which scrapped male and female prizes in 2011.

Britain's Emma Watson took home the best actor award for her performance in Disney's live-action remake of Beauty And The Beast.

She was up against Split's James McAvoy and Logan's Hugh Jackman, and described the gong as "very meaningful".

"The first acting award in history that doesn't separate nominees based on their sex says something about how we perceive the human experience," she said.

"MTV's move to create a genderless award for acting will mean something different to everyone, but to me it indicates that acting is about the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes and that doesn't need to be separated into two different categories.

"Empathy and the ability to use your imagination should have no limits. This is very meaningful to me."

The award was presented by actor Asia Kate Dillon, who plays the first gender non-binary character in TV show Billions.

Other British stars, young actress Millie Bobby Brown and Get Out's Daniel Kaluuya also triumphed at the ceremony.

Brown hailed her Stranger Things character Eleven a "badass female" after beating Emilia Clarke in Game Of Thrones and Jeffrey Dean Morgan in The Walking Dead to collect the gong for Best Actor in a TV Show.

"I want to thank the Duffer brothers because they have created a badass female, iconic character that I've got the honour to play," she said.

Kaluuya picked up the Next Generation award for his performance in Jordan Peele's social drama Get Out.

The ceremony, hosted by comedian Adam Devine in Los Angeles, was plagued by a sudden, unexpected hail storm while stars were walking the red carpet.

Moonlight actor Jharrel Jerome, who received the prize for Best Kiss along with actor Ashton Sanders, was sent running for cover while giving an interview outside the venue.

"I think it's incredible. I think it's about time we did something like that because we are all artists, we are not actress, actor, we are performers," he said of the new awards format.

"I think it's about time we should say who is the best storyteller rather than who is the best man or who is the best woman."